Australian Olympic Committee president John Coates has dived into swimming's pay dispute, saying many other athletes would love to be on the same pay sheet as swimmers.

Swimming Australia (SA) says its new high performance pay model will reward those who are successful on the world stage by handing out bonuses worth tens of thousands of dollars to those who win Olympic medals.

It is confident the new arrangements will see financial and training support go to more athletes than the ever before and will foster the next generation of stars.

Critics say the new pay model will leave the wages of the majority so low that it will force swimmers out of the sport.

But Coates says swimmers are on a good wicket compared with many other athletes.

SA is not commenting on the new pay structure until after the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

But Coates told the ABC's 7.30 program that it is worth remembering Olympic swimmers benefit from a variety of government grants and incentives.

"I think there's a lot of other sports in which the athletes would love to receive the money the swimmers are receiving," he said.

"In my sport of rowing, they do it for the love of rowing, there's no payment.

"The vast majority of Olympic sports, they do it because they want to compete and they love competing.

"With the London Olympics fast approaching, it's not surprising that athletes are keen to find ways to capitalise on their time in the spotlight."

Swimmers who do not perform well at the Olympics stand to earn a minimum of $15,000 for the year.

SA says top athletes will be paid up to $25,000 initially, and earn $35,000 for an individual gold medal. Relay teams will split a $60,000 bonus.

No safety net

Brendan Schwab from the Australian Athletes Alliance says the sports in which athletes make the most money are those where athletes embrace collective bargaining.

He told PM that Olympians' wages are "an extreme example" of performance-based pay because there is an absence of any safety net.

"It's very important to understand that Olympians are not entitled to a safety net wage despite the full-time nature of their commitment," he said.

"And the performance payments we're here talking about are really delivering a basic level of sustenance to enable them to commit to the sport.

"Everyone agrees on the nature of elite performance, in fact it's inbred in the whole psychology and personality of elite athletes. But it needs to be the cream on the cake; it can't be the cake itself."

Providing incentive

Professor David Shilbury, the director of Sport Management at Deakin University, says that there needs to be a balance between giving athletes a security net, but also giving them the incentive to strive for glory.

He pointed out not only swimming, but also the new wage agreements for Australian cricketers.

"There clearly is something in reward for performance and finding the right balance between providing enough security and for athletes to live but at the same time make them play or strive for that extra success, which can often be the difference between world-shattering and world-championship performances and just sort of middle of the road, mediocre-type performances," he said.

"It's becoming more competitive [for athletes]; there's no question about that. There are more sports seeking to gain a foothold commercially in the marketplace and therefore athletes are having to make very careful decisions about what they can be involved in and with what sport.

"The big question is how much of that influences our young developing athletes across the country and the choices of sports that they're making at the moment."